Colts Draft: Oddsmakers Reveal Most Likely Position Picked First

Which position will the Indianapolis Colts pick first in the 2024 NFL Draft? Oddsmakers have their best bets.

The lead-up to last year's draft brought plenty of anxious anticipation for Indianapolis Colts fans as they waited to see who the team's new quarterback would be. This year, there's a bit more mystery due to not needing a QB, so which positions the team might prioritize and the players that stick out most have been anybody's guess to this point.

The Colts do have a couple of big needs, and luckily for them, the 2024 NFL Draft is pretty top-heavy with the type of players who could be most useful to their future.

With a week remaining until the action begins, SportsBetting.ag listed their betting odds for which positions are most likely to be selected by each of the 32 NFL teams in the first round next Thursday. So, what do they think is most likely to happen for the Colts?

• Cornerback: +120
• Wide Receiver: +250
• Tight End: +275
• Defensive Line/Edge: +700
• Offensive Line: +800
• Linebacker: +5,000
• Safety: +5,000
• Quarterback: +10,000
• Running Back: +10,000

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Cornerback has been a thin spot for the Colts since last year. After adding a couple of rookies last year in JuJu Brents and Jaylon Jones to mix in with Dallis Flowers and Kenny Moore II, the team is still one starting-level player away from having an appealing position group. With players like Quinyon Mitchell, Terrion Arnold, Cooper DeJean, and Kool-Aid McKinstry available for the Colts early, this does seem like the most sensible option.

If it's not a corner for the Colts in Round 1 then wide receiver makes just as much sense. The offense was missing an explosive element last year, and despite getting quarterback Anthony Richardson and running back Jonathan Taylor back healthy this season, it'd still be wise to surround Richardson with weapons to maximize his development. Keep an eye on guys like Brian Thomas Jr., Xavier Worthy, Adonai Mitchell, or even Marvin Harrison Jr., Rome Odunze, or Malik Nabers if the Colts want to get aggressive and trade up.

If the Colts do want to get more explosive with their first pick and tight end Brock Bowers is on the board, there's a good chance he's the pick. Bowers is one of the best tight end prospects to enter the draft in recent memory and has drawn comparisons to the likes of Dallas Clark and George Kittle.

I wouldn't rule defensive end out for the Colts, as Alabama's Dallas Turner could be far too appealing to Colts GM Chris Ballard if he's available at 15 or is beginning to slide closer to them. Jared Verse and Chop Robinson also make sense if the Colts trade back.

The remaining positions—offensive line, linebacker, safety, quarterback, and running back—would be safely off the board for me in the first round if I were the Colts. An exception would be if they were to draft a player like DeJean and consider him a safety rather than a corner. The other positions either lack the proper value at that point in the draft, or the Colts have no need to address the position this early in the draft.

Something else to consider: Whether it's national reports about the Colts during draft time or betting odds, the Colts' draft room does... not... leak. If it did, we'd be gearing up to watch Will Levis' second season in Indy.

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